DAP SUPREMO Lim Kit Siang has ‘heavily echoed’ the view of former Chief Justice Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad that Malaysia’s “legal and judicial system will become a laughing stock” should ex-premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak be given a royal pardon as a key reason why UMNO president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi should relinquish his coveted post.
Should the Pardons Board agree to free Najib, Abdul Hamid had said this would lay waste years of painstaking work done by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and judicial officials to build up a case against the Pekan MP.
“The MACC spent years investigating, the public prosecutor spent months poring through investigation papers, the judges spent years trying the accused, studying and writing hundreds of pages of judgment, and calling multiple witnesses,” opined Abdul Hamid in a statement uploaded on his website.
“And then, barely two months after Najib is convicted and sentenced to jail and fined millions of ringgit, members of the Pardons Board – with a single stroke of their pen – pardon the accused of all the charges.”
Henceforth, the veteran politician and Iskandar Puteri MP said all political parties in the forthcoming 15th General Election (GE15) should condemn the RM50 bil 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) financial scandal and “make the saving of Malaysia from becoming a kleptocracy a main plank of their election pledges”.
“Is Zahid prepared to do this? Does Zahid agree (with Abdul Hamid)?” asked Kit Siang.
“Second is the UMNO president’s failure to be a witness to testify in Najib’s trial that he had met the royal Arab donor who had donated RM2.6 bil to Najib. He said this publicly in August 2015. His silence and failure to testify in Najib’s trial could only mean that he was not telling the truth in August 2015.”
Thirdly, Kit Siang said Zahid was unable to clear himself of major responsibility in the RM9 bil littoral combatant ships (LCS) scandal while attempted to shift the blame to Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, his successor as Defence Minister.
“Although Zahid held the defence minister position from April 2009 to May 2013 and was succeeded by Hishammuddin (when the contract was signed on July 17, 2014), the two declassified reports on the LCS scandal despite being heavily re-dated showed that it was Zahid who must bear greater responsibility than Hishammuddin for the LCS scandal,” argued Kit Siang.
“Between the issue of LOA (letter of award) and the signing of the contract, there were 21 LOAs worth some RM5 bil to procure equipment and systems, most of which were made when Zahid was the Defence Minister.”
“As the LOAs made during the time Hishammuddin became Defence Minister soon after GE13 did not reach RM700 mil, Zahid must bear greater responsibility than Hishammuddin for the LCS scandal,” added Kit Siang.
Fourthly, Zahid has failed to explain why he overturned his decision in 2011 as recommended by the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) to contract six Dutch-made Sigma LCS but instead chose six French-made Gowind LCS (by the manufacturer of Malaysia’s two Scorpène submarines) without consulting the Navy who is the end-user.
Finally, the Bagan Datuk MP has also failed to state clearly and specifically that Najib as the PM and Finance Minister back then was not responsible for the RM9 bil LCS scandal, especially given the LCS procurement went back to the time when Najib was defence minister in the Tun Abdullah Badawi’s Cabinet. – Sept 8, 2022
Main pic credit: Bernama
